Call in your reservations for our November 3 show with Hanneke Cassel, Mike Block, and Keith Murphy to 401-725-9272.

Effervescent and engaging, Boston-based fiddler Hanneke Cassel is a performer, teacher and composer whose career spans over two decades. Her style fuses influences from Scotland and Cape Breton Island with Americana grooves and musical innovations, creating a cutting-edge acoustic sound that retains the integrity and spirit of the Scottish tradition. Cassel's music is a blend of the contemporary and traditional, described by the Boston Globe as "exuberant and rhythmic, somehow wild and innocent, delivered with captivating melodic clarity and an irresistible playfulness." Cassel's latest release, "Trip to Walden Pond," features traditional Scottish and Cape Breton tunes and seventeen new pieces composed in the Scottish idiom. While her lively style is very much evident, this new album carries a deep, soulful sound with songs of celebration and farewell. "Trip to Walden Pond," similar to Cassel's five previous albums, offers arrangements of traditional fiddle music and original tunes that evoke humor and heart. This latest album also includes several compositions penned by Hanneke as commissions to benefit Many Hopes, a children's education nonprofit based in Kenya that she avidly supports. A native of Oregon, Hanneke started out as a Texas-style fiddler and went on to win the 1997 U.S. National Scottish Fiddle Championship, which awarded her the opportunity to study with Alasdair Fraser and introduced her to fiddle camps and the folk community, both of which continue to play an integral role in her life. The Hanneke Cassel Band features Mike Block on cello and guitarist/vocalist Keith Murphy. In addition to performing with her own band, Cassel has been featured on PBS with Boston-based fiddle band Childsplay and has performed with Baroque/Celtic group Ensemble Galilei at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and the National Geographic in Washington, D.C. Hanneke and her husband Mike live in Boston and are active within many circles of musicians. Besides their involvement in the Scottish fiddle scene and at Berklee College of Music, they are frequent performers at Club Passim and are rooted in the thriving local music community.

*All ticket prices include a $1.00 per ticket restoration charge

Call in your reservations for our October 13 show with Bohemian Quartet to 401-725-9272.

The mission of keeping a rare musical flame alight is a noble and often challenging one, but the Bohemian Quartet is more than up to the task. In this case, the acclaimed Rhode Island-based ensemble featuring violin, viola, cello, and bass specializes in music of the "Romani" or "Gypsy" tradition, along with related Eastern European folk styles. The Bohemian Quartet was formed in 2005. Violinist Stan Renard, a composer and virtuoso player with an impressive list of credentials, assembled the group with the idea of preserving the tradition and indulging in the virtuosic playing of classic gypsy music. Renard recruited like-minded and ambitious friends: Christine Harrington on cello, Nancy Richardson on viola, and Dave Zinno on upright bass. Together, they've made a commitment to the genre, and aspired to performing it with both reverence and adventure. Indeed, like every good curator, the ensemble embraces tradition, and still wanders off in newer, unpredictable directions. The name "Bohemian Quartet" was borrowed from the original Bohemian Quartet (also known as the Czech Quartet after 1918), a string quartet of international repute that was founded in 1891 and disbanded in 1934. Both groups share a passion for the deep-rooted authenticity of the Romani tradition, as well as the ability to play that historic repertoire with extraordinary joie de vivre. Their third CD project "For You" was released at Blackstone River Theatre last year. 

*All ticket prices include a $1.00 per ticket restoration charge

Call in your reservations for our October 12 show with North Sea Gas to 401-725-9272.

North Sea Gas is a folk band from Scotland who have been performing their blend of poignant and rousing songs and high-energy instrumentals for 39 years. With a combination of fiddle, guitar, mandolin, bodhran and bouzouki, complementing strong three-part vocal harmonies and a keen sense of humor, an entertaining evening is always guaranteed. This will be the last North Sea Gas concert at Blackstone River Theatre with no tours scheduled beyond June, 2020. – don't miss it! Touring behind their newest CD, “Hearth and Homeland," North Sea Gas has now recorded 21 albums and played to audiences all over Great Britain, Europe, Scandinavia, the U.S. and Canada. A previous project, "The Fire And The Passion Of Scotland" won the 2013 Album of the Year award from Celtic Radio in the U.S. as well as first place in the "Jigs and Reels" category for a set of tunes on the album. The band is led by founder Dave Gilfillan on lead vocals, guitar and banjo, well-known for his tongue-in-cheek humor. Ronnie MacDonald on lead and harmony vocals, guitar and bouzouki is joined by Grant Simpson on high-energy fiddle and vocals. 

*All ticket prices include a $1.00 per ticket restoration charge

Call in your reservations for our October 27 show with Brenda Bennett to 401-725-9272.

Life's mysteries and highways are not always explained to us. We are met with certain destinies – some of which are fulfilled and some which remain open-ended, never to be chased. Some doors in life we are lucky to enter and close behind us while others stay slightly ajar, swinging and teasing with a taunting nag. In the mid 80s, it was the destiny of musician Brenda Bennett, who had recorded and sung the world over as a member of Vanity 6 and Apollonia 6, to record a solo album under the guise of her mentor Prince. It never came to be. After a farewell concert in 2016 Brenda told journalists she planned to take it easy. The possibility of a 2nd CD after her solo CD "A Capella" was not out of the cards but also not a priority. It was here when fate intervened. When Prince died in April that same year not only were his fans left shocked, but his former associates and collaborators were blindsided. While Prince was laid down to eternal rest a flame ignited inside Brenda Bennett and thoughts returned to that unrecorded solo album from the 1980s. What was once a destiny had became an afterthought and a missed opportunity. But was it? Inspired by her grief and the legacy of her mentor, Brenda dove headfirst into her second solo album, titled “Once Again.” The album that was never made in the 1980s was now going to be made. Encouraged by her fans' response, Bennett embarked on a creative journey that would put certain ghosts to rest, ignite new fires, close some of the doors to the past, and open new ones for the future. On “Once Again” Brenda Bennett reaches her full potential as an artist, singer, and musical force. The ten tracks unfold like a journey through time touching on loss, gain, power, love, life, and death. This album is a career best and a personal triumph. Prince would be very proud. R.I. Music Hall of Fame inductee Brenda Bennett will perform "Once Again" in its entirety tonight along with the co-producer and engineer of "Once Again," George Dussault on guitar and vocals, Betsy Listenfelt on acoustic guitar and vocals, Sharlene Denardo on bass, Matt Demick on drums, and Theresa Ronan on keys. There will be a 30-minute opening set by How's About Charlie, an acoustic vocal trio from Providence featuring Amanda Centrella, Nicole Gauthier, and Beth Killian.